Wringer



R. A. WATKINS.

WRINGER.

APPLICATION FILED OCT. 14, 1920.

Patented Aug. 22, 1922.

INVENTOR. Roy A. WA Txuvs BY 62%); dam

A TTORNE Y.

umra s'rra ROY A. w'nrxms, or

v EDWIN Lists,- or CLARINDA', IOWA. I

' l WRINGER.

Spc'cnwauo'n of LcttersPatent. Patgn'ted vlApplicationfi1ed'0ctober14,'1920; Scria1No.4=16,971.

p T all whom it may come/ n,

provide a swinging wringer adapted to be operated from a power shafta'nd',liav ing a pivot bearing-of relatively large diameter A furtherobject of this invention to provide an improved swinging wrin'ger whichmay be set or positioned at any selected point in its orbital travel.

A further object of thi's invention to providea simple, cheap and easilyoperated tension release mechanism. for clothes wringers.

I With these andcoth'er objects in View, my

invention, consists vin the construction; ar-

rangement I and combination: of elements hereinafter set forth, [pointedout; in my claims and illustrated by the] accompanying drawing, inwhich- Fi'gi'lre 1 is an elevation, partly in section, showing myimproved wringermounted for practical use. Figure 2 is an outer endelevation of the wringer. Figure '3' is a vertical section on anenlarged, scale illustratingthe tensionrelease mechanism. Figure 4!..isa verticalsection on, the line 4-4; of Figure 5, and Figure 5 isacross-section on the line 5-5 of'fFigure bot-h illustrating partsofthetension releasemechanism.

Figure 6; is a cross section similar to Figure5 and illustratingamodified form. i In the construction of the mechanism'the 45L numeral10 designates a support of. any suitable kind, which .may be a portionofwa washingmachine. Rising from the support 10 is a bracket ll havingformed thereona cylindrical gear case" 12; open at its upper end.An'operating shaft 13 is; suitably driven as by a motor (not shown)"carried by the support 10,.andI said, shaft is jour- -na1edin thebraoketjll' and'has one end proje'cting within the gear case 12,pwithabevel gearlt fixedtheretowithin said case.

The yv-ringer is formed" with spaced end "rum cr es. v

CLARI-NDA, IOWA, ASSIGNOR, BY. MEsNEAssIGiiiME'NTs; id

bars 16, a bottom bar-l7 and atop bar 18, said bottom bar being formedintegrally with the end bar 15 Asubstantiallycylinvdrical gear housing 19 is alsoiforme'di-inte grally', with the end bar 157V and, brojectstherefrom oppositely to the bottombar 17. A l

The geanhousing 19 has. atits lower enda reduced ournal portion 2Ofitting within and rotatable relative to the gearcase{:l2,

whereby the wringer mechanism maybe i swung through an are relative lcase i and to the support. This connection pro vides'a bearing for thewringer oflaiigekliameter and tends to ;hold -Ithe= Wringer againstsagging anCl 1111S al1gI1mGIit.;y 'llhe wringer may be set or'.positioned ;,at;;any-;-

point of its arcuate travel and h ld b the wall ofthe case 12' and engaging-th'e portion zen Shaft 22 is, arranged verti cally and axiallyinthe gear housing 1 9fand means of a set screw, 21 mounted .through ifitted to its lower end. is a bevel gear- 23 meshing with the gear 1ewhen the wringer mechanism is in place as shown and; described;

gear 24, meshing constantly :with opposed bevel gears25, 26 mountedhloosely on a v houslng. The shaft 27 extendsjqvithim'and f.

horizontal shaft 27 extending-throughsaid through the\VlFlllgQl.fl&l1}6:QIlCl carriesone of the wringerrolls, such; as28,,whiclncoacts with a second, roll 29, in coinmonmanf ner. I Slidablymounted onand featheredgto the w-ringer shaft 27 between the-bevel gears25, 261s adouble clutch member 30ladap'ted toenga ge selectively. withclutch members formed on the opposed faces of said gears; A removabletop '31 is provided for the hous ng 19,011 whichv is pivoted al'shifting lever" 32 which is-exten ded through. said top and-prov dedwith, an eccentric pin 33 pr0- je'cting downwardly ewithin acircumferential groove 3 in the clutch member.

gears 25, 26, or place in neutral position between said :gears,tlu1s'controlling thG fIIO- .Movementof the levervBQthrOugh an arc. resultsin: sliding movementof the clutch -member 30 to engageit selectivelywith the tation.of the wringer shaft ZZand rolls,- i I Eachof the endmembers 15,-; 1'6 of the wringer frame is formed withna; vertical slot35. (Fig. 2 withiuwhich rojectlthe ends of the topib arfll8 and rolls-28 29 and also the ends of a leaf spring or tension member 36 loatedbetween said top banand X d Pber end Of thejf shaft 22, within thehousing;19',;.is afbevel the uppermost roll 29. The shaft 27 of the roll28 extends through the slot of the end member 15 to the housing 19 Inpractice the members 18, 36, and 28 are assembled relative to the endmember 15, in order, after which the end member 16 is so placed that theother ends of said members enter its slot 35, and it is then secured inplace relative to the bottom bar 17 to hold the parts in assembled.position. The bottom bar 1.7 preferably is iormed with an upwardlyprojecting tenon 37 at its outer end adapted to enter a notch in thelower end of the end member 16, and pin 38 is mounted transverselythrough said end member and the tenon. The shaft of the roll 29 is notgeared to the shaft 27 of the roll 28, but dependence is placed fordriving said shaft 29 upon frictional contact of the rolls, which isregulated by tension of the spring 36. The shafts of the rolls 28, 29enter and are suitably journaled in bearing blocks 39, 40 carried by theend members 15, 16.

In its central portion the top bar 18 is formed with a boss 41 having avertically arranged tapped bore into which a collar 42 is threaded. Thecollar 42 is formed with a vertically arranged smooth bore through whichextends a stem 43 having at its upper end a hand wheel 44. A clip 45 isfixed to the central portion of the spring 36 and carries on the upperside of said spring a socket 46 in which is swiveled a. ball 47 formedon the lower end of the stem .43. Between its ends the stem 43 is formedwith a longitudinal groove 48 terminating at its upper end in alaterally extending notch or seat 49. A i in 50 is mounted in andradially of the collar 42, projects within the bore thereof and isadapted to travel in the groove 48 and. enter the notch or seat 49 ofthe stem at times. The pin may be introduced to its position in thecollar by driving it through a radial hole 51 at the opposite side ofthe collar bore and through a diametrical hole 52 in. the stem.

The lateral notch or seat 49 extends to the right of the vertical groove48 so that in use, when the stem 43 rotated clockwise, through manualoperation of the wheel 44, the lug or pin 50.finds a seat in said notchand communicates rotary movementof the stem to the collar 42; and assaid. collar is threaded in the bore of the boss 41, such rotarymovement causes also a downward movement of the collar and stem relativeto said boss and applies pressure and tension to the spring 36, whichoverlies at'its ends the uppermost bearings 40 of the wrlnger rolls.fdeslred tens on andpressurc is applied to In this manner the theuppermost roll for the use to which. it

is to'be put. In case it is desired to quickly release the tension, asin the event a lump of clothing, or the hand of the operator, becomescaught between the rolls, the wheel 44 is given a slight turn to theleft, or contra-clockwise, to bring the vertical. groove 48 into theplane of the pin 50, thereby permitting upward movement of the stem 43and relieving the pressure and tension. on the spring 36 and uppermostroll, the pin 50 traversing the groove 48 as the stem moves upwardly.Thus an upward movement of the uppermost roll 29 is permitted which islimited only by the available space in the wringer frame and the lengthof the groove 48, and injury to the mechanism or to objects therein isavoided. Thereafter the collar 42 may be moved upwardly in the boss 41by contra-clockwise rotary movement of the stem, to such point that thepin 50 may again. enter the seat or notch 49, after which tension mayagain be applied by rotary movement in the opposite direction. 7

In Figure 6 the groove 48 of the stem 43 is semi-circular incross-section and the pin 50 is replaced by a ball 50 seated in asemi-circular depression in the wall of the bore of the collar 42 andadapted to travel in said groove and also to find a seat in a lateralnotch 49 at the upper end of said groove. The operation and function isidentical with that previously described.

Either form provides a simple andquickly operating method of securinginstant release of the tension on the wringer rolls. .The'

pin 50 or ball 50*- forms an operative connecting member between thestem and the threaded collar when seated in the lateral notch 49 or 49*of the latter.

A water board 53 is mounted beneath the with a theaded bore, a collaradapted to be screwed into said threaded bore and having a smooth bore,a stem extending through said bore and having at. its upper end meansfor manually rotating it and swiveled atits lower end to said'tensionmember, said stem being formed with a vertical groove termii'iating atone end in a lateral seat, anda member in sald collar adapted totraverse seat and form an operative connection betweensaid stem andcollar. i

, 2. In a wringer mechanism, a frame, rolls carried thereby, a tensionmember in said frame engaging said rolls, a member threadsaid groove andalso adapted to enter said ed in said frame, a stemadapted for slidvi'ng movement in said member and engaging said tension member, saidstem being formed member and also prevent slidiiig movement I v I 'tvitha vertical groove having a seat extendof said stem. I I I ing laterallytherefrom, and a connecting Signed at Clarinda, in thecounty of Page 10member in said threaded member adapted and State of Iowa, this17th dayof Septo traverse said groove and also adapted to tember, 1920. i 1enter said seat and form an operative connection between said stem' andthreaded I v ROY

